KQED's The California Report

A new bill aims to protect transgender youth and their families from legal action if they come to California for medical care. This comes after a number of Republican-controlled states considered legislation targeting gender-affirming medical care. Reporter: Megan Jamerson, KCRW In 1966, at the height of the civil rights movement, a live call-in radio show premiered on San Diego’s airwaves. The sh...

A new proposal from a group of mostly Democratic state lawmakers would send a $400 rebate to California taxpayers to help with the massive surge in gas prices. The group has sent a letter to Governor Newsom, arguing that a rebate would cover the current 51-cents per gallon state gas tax for a full year. For two years now, Los Angeles tenants have been protected from eviction over non-payment of re...

Tuesday marks the one year anniversary of the Atlanta spa shootings in which eight people were killed – six of them Asian women. In Los Angeles, rememberances will be deliberatley muted. Reporter: Josie Huang, KPCC In the aftermath of George Floyd’s killing, the California Department of Corrections disciplined two officers for making racist statements on social media. Thanks to a new law, we now c...

Ukrainians seeking asylum at U.S. southern border may be turned away because of a Trump-era policy relating to the pandemic. Reporter: Gustavo Solis, KPBS Alleged sexual assault of incarcerated women at a Dublin prison is so rampant some inmates and staff refer to it as “the rape club." California lawmakers personally visited to hear from incarcerated people firsthand. Reporter: Alex Hall, KQED Go...

Community health clinics have vaccinated hundreds of thousands of low income Californians for more than a year, but due to a federal funding glitch the clinics have been absorbing the cost. And now, Los Angeles’ largest community health center may have to close vaccination sites in some of LA’s poorest areas. Reporter: Jackie Fortier, KPCC California voters passed a ballot measure in 2018 to do aw...

The state’s top conservation official says that California is "very clearly" headed into a third year of drought. He encouraged Californians to save water, but the state is not yet mandating it. Reporter: Kevin Stark, KQED According to the United Nations, more than two million people have fled Ukraine since Vladimir Putin launched his invasion of the country late last month. Two of them are a 94-y...

California officials are cheering a Biden administration move to restore the state’s power in setting its own smog control rules. The decision reverses a Trump-era policy.  Reporter: Kevin Stark, KQED California Republican Congressman and House Minority Leader, Kevin McCarthy is calling on Governor Newsom to reverse the state’s restrictions on oil and gas production, now that Russian oil imports h...

As we continue to see and hear the harrowing stories coming out of Ukraine, we’re talking to Californians with connections to the region who are trying to help . One of them is Patrick Kolasinski, an immigration attorney now based in Modesto, but originally from Poland. He and other attorneys are helping Ukrainians with legal issues they might have. Guest: Patrick Kolasinski, Immigrant Attorney ba...

Governor Gavin Newsom will deliver his annual State of the State address from Sacramento on Tuesday. The state of the state speech is typically a chance for governors to lay out their big plans for the year ahead, but it could be a little different this year. Reporter: Scott Shafer, KQED  California’s seas are rising and for the first time, all 17 of the state’s agencies have come together to plan...

On Sunday, volunteers at Los Angeles’ Ukrainian Cultural Center filled big plastic bags full of supplies dropped off by people, to help Ukraine.  Ukrainian advocates in the Bay Area are welcoming news that federal authorities will offer humanitarian protections to thousands of Ukrainians already in the U.S. An estimated 75,000 Ukrainians could receive Temporary Protected Status for 18 months, if t...

Los Angeles County is lifting its universal mask mandate on Friday. That means face coverings will no longer be required in public indoor settings -- whether or not you're vaccinated. Reporter: Jackie Fortier, KPCC A new podcast -- “Idolo: the Ballad of Chalino Sanchez” -- follows the remarkable story of a Mexican singer, whose career was cut short at its peak when he was murdered in the early 199...

Poor people and people of color have been largely kept out of neighborhoods with single family homes in Los Angeles. And a new study from UC Berkeley’s Othering and Belonging Institute confirms that LA’s single family zoning laws are to blame.  Guest: David Wagner, Reporter, KPCC and LAist The Los Angeles police commission has approved a new policy that requires officers to explain on camera why t...

Californians who are not vaccinated do not have to wear a mask in many indoor setting, like bars, restaurants and stores. This week's announcement is welcome news to many, but also concerning for some who have tried their best to not get infected during the pandemic. Guest: Abraar Karan, Infectious Disease Expert, Stanford School of Medicine Californians can expect more water conservation measures...

A gunman killed his three daughters and another person before turning the gun on himself at a church in the Sacramento area on Monday night. Law enforcement officials say there was a temporary restraining order against him, which meant he shouldn't have had access to a gun. Crime has become a key concern for many California voters ahead of this year’s election season. Earlier in the pandemic, the...

Last month, we reported that delays for state hearings in wage theft cases are hurting low-wage workers hoping to recover the money they’re owed. Now, new data obtained by KQED shows how much those wait times have ballooned in recent years. Reporter: Farida Jhabvala Romero, KQED Anti-war rallies continue across California, in support of Ukraine. Many Ukrainians living in California are worried abo...

As Russian forces continue their assault on Ukraine, Californians who are from the region or who have friends and family there are trying to comprehend everything that has happened over the last two days. Guest: Laryssa Reifel, President of Ukrainian Cultural Center in Los Angeles California’s reparations task force continued meeting Thursday, but many task force members were left disappointed. Th...

With Russia launching attacks on Ukraine on multiple fronts, these are very frightening times for anyone with family, friends and colleagues in that country. That includes thousands of people in the Bay Area with personal and business ties to Ukraine.  Reporter: Rachael Myrow, KQED  Federal officials are predicting a third consecutive dry year for California. And that’s led them to dramatically cu...

California public schools could be required to have COVID-19 testing and management plans under new legislation introduced Tuesday in the state senate.  The bill by State Senator Richard Pan of Sacramento, would also provide state resources to carry out the plans. The Rancho Santa Fe School District is making indoor masking optional for students. This comes as the state has not issued additional g...

Russian president Vladimir Putin’s decision to recognize two regions of Ukraine as independent states and send in Russian troops has led to greater global concerns that things could escalate quickly in the region. And many with ties to the Ukraine in the Bay Area are worried about the safety of friends and family. Reporter: Cesar Saldaña, KQED California Supreme Court Justice Leondra Kruger is sai...

Alberto Carvalho faces many challenges as he takes over the Los Angeles Unified School District. One of his main goals is dealing with some of the impacts the COVID-19 pandemic has brought to both students and teachers, Guest: Alberto Carvalho, LA Unified Superintendent Millions of Americans with disabilities face barriers to getting married. Tying the knot can mean losing the federal benefits the...

Former Chancellor Joseph Castro’s departure was announced Thursday after the Fresno State Academic Senate - which represents the schools’ faculty - issued a declaration of no confidence in the chancellor earlier this week. Isolation, fear, and remote learning because of the pandemic have been changing how teenagers think about school. Reporter: Caroline Smith, KQED  As California is on track to ha...

The first records released to KQED under an expanded police transparency law signed by Governor Newsom last year give the public a glimpse into how police departments investigate officer discrimination. The police department of Avenal, a small town in the Central Valley, cut the pay of a sergeant for using a racial slur while on-duty.  Reporter: Sukey Lewis, KQED Bay Area Representative Jackie Spe...

Sea levels along the U.S. coastline are projected to rise by a foot or more by 2050, according to new federal data. But the projections are lower for the West Coast than for the rest of the country. Guest: Ezra David Romero, KQED Climate Reporter  California’s battle against single-use plastic waste continues this week. Lawmakers are considering a bill that would limit the types of packaging onlin...

While masking requirements will be lifted for most settings in California starting February 16th, schools aren't one of them – yet. This has school staff, healthcare officials, and others debating when the time is right to unmask Reporter: Julia McEvoy, KQED The Roseville Joint Union High School District Board of Trustees voted last week to make face coverings optional. According to a new Berkeley...

Mask mandates are soon disappearing for most people in California, but they’ll remain in place at congregate settings like immigrant detention centers. In many of these facilities, COVID-19 is spreading, but detained people say it’s been tough to get a booster shot to protect themselves. Reporter: Farida Jhabvala Romero, KQED  Immigrant rights advocates are warning Cambodian communities in Califor...